From Jan 1, telcos to receive termination rate on international calls in dollars, says NCC

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has set $0.045 as the new international termination rate (ITR) for voice calls.

In a statement today, the commission said the new rate takes effect from January 1, 2022.

ITR is the rate paid to local operators by international operators to terminate calls in Nigeria.

This is different from the mobile termination rate (MTR), which is the rate local operators pay to another local operator to terminate calls within the country.

The new ITR replaces the existing one at N24.40k and is being received in naira by the operators.

With the new development, mobile network providers in Nigeria will begin receiving revenue from all international calls in US dollars from next year.

“The $0.045 rate is the floor price for ITR services and shall take effect from January 1, 2022. The rate is to be paid in US Dollar to enable Nigerian operators to receive an increasing rate in Naira terms to accommodate devaluation,” the statement reads.

“No licensee shall charge and/or receive effective rate per minute below determined ITR floor rate.

“As such, payment discounts, volume discounts, and any other concession that has the effect of bringing the effective ITR lower than the rate determined shall be deemed a contravention of the new determination and will attract sanctions in line with the Nigerian Communications (Enforcement process, etc.) Regulations, 2019.”

The NCC explained that the ITR floor is the minimum that can be charged.

This implies that operators can negotiate with their international carriers/partners to arrive at a rate above the floor.